Blood Prize (Bloody Dance #1) Page 4

  If that wasn’t enough to satisfy him, then I didn’t know what was. I wasn’t going to fall on my knees and beg to be forgiven for things I did before his lifetime.

  “You drank from my grandfather.” Shu said and I looked towards him. That was true. I had drank from the old man. “Why?” Why had I done it? Didn’t we have this talk before. Maybe not.

  “He was sick, old, growing weaker by the day. We were going after the Blood Demon again. You wanted your pound of flesh. He knew that he couldn’t make it. He didn’t want to slow the team down. So he asked me too. I needed blood and he didn’t want Kenji to kill him. So I did.” It was that simple. He asked me to and I respected him enough to grant that wish.

  “Why not save him? Why not make him like you?” Did Shu hear what he was saying? I missed his grandfather as well but making him a demon wouldn’t have worked. I looked down at my hands. Even if I tried, I didn’t know if I could have.

  “I was young, It was Ban’s blood. I had so much fear of dying my will to live was otherworldly. I’m not even sure how I became this. Maybe only Ban can do it.” I shrugged my shoulders. Maybe it was a one-time deal. I got lucky.

  Plus, it took me years to have this control. When I first woke up, there was only the hunger. If I turned Kaleb, he would have been a monster. He would have tried to eat the very people that he loved and protected. I would have killed him before he could hurt the family he built. Kaleb wasn’t like me. Even at the cost of his life he would have never wanted to become one of the monsters he hunted.

  “I understand. Sorry for doubting you, Zero.” I shook my head. He was human. We all had doubts. “Dante might be watching you. You should be careful.”

  “You worry too much.” He was always worrying over something. Maybe Dante was watching me. He should have just seen the troubled teenage boy I pretend to be.

  “I’m a Demon Hunter and my best friend is a demon. I have to worry.” I laughed shaking my head at him. Taking out a cigarette I lit it up before passing it to Shu and lighting another one. We both leaned against the wall as we inhaled the smoke.

  “Can you see where Maya is?” Shu asked and I looked down at the picture of the demon we were about to start hunting. The paper bird only worked for humans. Demons had a way to hid themselves from that kind of magic.

  The center of my forehead opened as the third eye appeared. The third eye was a high-level magic that only S class demons could do. Of course, it also meant that S class demons were protected against it.

  Maya was on a stage in a town of Dragun. That town was half a day’s drive from here. The demon was singing as the people in the crowd swayed to the music. I watched as she took a bow when another person walked onto the stage.

  Long jet black hair and white eyes that had no pupils. His skin was tanned as if he was kissed by the sun. Tall, lean, deadly I just finished looking at a picture of this man. The Blood Demon Kenji was in Dragun with Mya. What was he up to? Who was Maya that she had such powerful friends? I didn’t know. I was going to find out soon.

  FIVE

  This was a dangerous game I was playing. I needed to tell the others about Kenji being there. If Shu knew about Kenji, he would make this mission about the Blood Demon. Maybe it was just a one time thing. Maybe by the time we made it to Dragun, Kenji would be gone.

  I wanted to get them all back home. When we left, I promised Amy that Shu was coming home. I always promised her, he would make it back. So far, I always kept that promise and brought him home. I couldn’t let Kenji hurt Shu.

  I still didn’t understand why Kenji was even with Maya. As I laid in the back of the truck, my hood was up. I had a blanket over my face. I appeared to be asleep to all the others. Instead, the third eye was open as I watched Maya’s movements.

  Watching her made me understand her powers better. When she sang the men in the room succumbed to her. Her voice was beautiful, but it seemed to put humans in some kind of trance. They fell under her power and who knew what she would do with them after that. I would need to tell Dante and Shu to use the earplugs we have. Aya and I should be safe.

  Right now, Maya was in a hotel room. She was sitting in front of a mirror when the door opened and we both shifted our eyes. The Blood Demon came in. Why was he here again? What was his connection with her?

  The two of them were speaking, but I couldn’t hear their words. From the look on Maya’s face, I didn’t think she trusted the Blood Demon. That was probably smart of her. You shouldn't trust a man like Kenji.

  Maya jumped up, getting into Kenji’s face. They seemed to be in a heated argument when they both suddenly stopped. I held my breath as Maya slowly turned towards whatever made her and Kenji cool their heads. Sitting in a chair looking as beautiful as every memory I ever had of him was the bane of my existence.

  “Ban,” I whispered his name as the third eye closed. Why was he there? What was going on? Who was Maya that she was hanging around the Blood Demon and the Great Demon Ban? What were they planning for two S-class demons to come along?

  It made my chest tighten; it made my stomach twist in knots. We were going to die. If we went on this mission, all of us would die. There was no way that we could take on two S-class demons and Maya. She was a B class demon. That was between of the two most powerful classes and two weakest.

  It also meant that Maya herself wouldn’t just be an easy kill. I didn’t see how we could win this battle. So then what were we suppose to do. Sitting up, I pulled the blanket off my face. Pushing my hood down, I looked around the truck.

  Aya was turned around in her chair looking at me. Dante was doing the same from the passenger seat. My eyes shifted to the rear-view mirror as I locked them with Shu’s. What would he do if I told him about this? Would he do the right thing, the sensible thing? What was the sensible thing in this kind of situation?

  On the one hand, this is as good a chance as Shu will ever get at Kenji. Demons have no honor. If we went for the Blood Demon, Maya and Ban probably would just sit back and watch us. What if they didn’t? I knew if Ban saw me he would attack. Was Shu, Aya, and Dante strong enough to take on Kenji without me?

  On the other hand, Shu could turn this car around and run back home to his wife and daughter. He would be safe and sound in his home surrounded by people who loved him. This was Shu; he was never going to run from a chance to fight Kenji, to kill the Blood Demon.

  Then there was Aya and Dante. This was their lives as well. We would be putting them in danger. They were Demon Hunters. They knew the dangers that came with this job. Tomorrow wasn’t promised together.

  I sighed pushing my fingers through my hair. We all must make our own choices. I could only tell them what I knew. If Shu went forward, I would follow him to the end of the Earth and back. The others would have to make their own choices.

  “Stop the car, we all need to talk.” I could see Shu giving a quick nod of his head. A few minutes later he pulled off to the side of the road. We each stepped out of the car. I stood in front of our small group. This wouldn’t be the first time that I knew things that no one else should.

  “I had a vision.” That was how I always explained these things away. “Kenji and Ban are with Maya.” There was no need to sugar coat it or beat around the bush. Aya gasped stumbling back as if I told her they were in front of us.

  I could smell her fear. It was sour with notes of earth tones. Was she scared of Ban or the thought that both of the demons were together? I knew it wasn’t for Maya or Kenji. We’ve gone after Kenji and she was never so . . . scared before. Turning from Aya, Shu was my biggest worry. His answer was my answer.

  “So we finally get a shot at him.” His fingers were clenched into a fist. I inhaled a sharp breath before letting it out. I already knew what his answer was going to be. It didn’t actually come as a shock to me. Still, I think a small part of me was hoping Shu would be smart about this.

  “I’m in,” Dante said, “taking on two of the greats. We’ll go down in history if we pull this off
.” Was it sad that I didn’t think we could pull this off? Maybe we could kill Kenji. I knew that if the other two weren’t around Maya was as good as ours. Ban was the wild card. We couldn’t beat him.

  “Are you all crazy?!” Aya yelled drawing our attention to her. “It’s the Great Demon Ban. He’s with the Blood Demon. No one has ever beat either one of them alone. And you all want to take them on together. With a third demon in the mix. It’s . . . It’s suicidal.” She was right, of course.

  “Aya,” Shu spoke her name as softly as he would have done Rai. “You’re still young. No one is asking you to come. You have your whole life ahead of you. You have to decide what’s best for you.” If she chooses to come, her death will be on her. She needed to be willing to fight for her life. That was what being a Demon Hunter was about. Always fighting for your life.

  “What about you, Zero?” I could feel their eyes on me. What about me? What would I do? What was my choice?

  “I’m going with Shu. I’m going to meet Ban again.” I couldn’t avoid it. A part of me even looked forward to it. It’s been a long time since I last saw Ban. Forty years was a long time to go without looking at someone. It was about time we met up again.

  Aya made this defeated sound. She was pushing her fingers through her hair again. Her eyes were on me before she nodded her head. What did that suppose to mean? She was in?

  “If Zero is brave enough I can be too.” I shut my eyes against her words. She wasn’t me. I had died already. I didn’t have any reason to fear the death that Ban could give me. Aya just thought I was some brave kid. I wish I could tell her. I wish I could make her understand she shouldn’t base her choices on me. I was so much more than she could comprehend.

  It was night when we made it to Dragun. Standing in front of the trunk we checked our weapons. The club that Maya was inside was across the street from the parking lot. I could already see a line of men and women gathering, waiting to get in.

  Carrying weapons into a club was common practice. There were dangerous people, dangerous monsters all around us. You were crazy if you didn’t walk around with some kind of protection. I knew for a fact that most of the people in the line had weapons. Yet still we were all going into the wolf’s den.

  Three demons were inside waiting for their prey. I haven’t seen them kill anyone yet though. I’ve kept my third eye open for the ride to Dragun. So far, Maya sang, Kenji spoke a few words. Ban didn’t show his face. So what were they doing? We were about to find out.

  Moving across the street we all fell in line with the others. At least an hour had passed before we were close enough to see the bouncer at the door. Standing outside of the line talking to the second bouncer was three people. I could . . . smell them. They smelled sweet, like flowers and . . . hope.

  Two of them were males and then there was a woman. Even though the woman was pretty, it was the smallest of the group that drew my eyes to them. He was . . . beautiful. The kind of beauty that I’ve only seen in Ban before. Unlike Ban his beauty was bright; there wasn’t any darkness inside of him.

  Long strawberry blonde hair stopped at the center of his back. He was so tiny, petite even. When he turned, his eyes locked with mine. They were a soft blue color and I could see the power he held inside. It wasn’t the elemental kind of magic like Aya, nor was the black magic demons possess.

  This boy had the rarest of all magic. White magic meant that his soul was pure. That he was untouched but all things evil in this world. This boy had no sins, he was unblemished. A dark part of me wanted to taint his pureness. A darker part of me wanted to drink the sweet blood that rested in his veins.

  When he looked at me, I felt something. Something inside of me called to him. Something inside of me knew him. That was . . . impossible. He didn’t look older than fifteen, sixteen at the most. How could I know him? I was with Shu and his family for the last forty years. Turning away from him, I looked to the boy beside him.

  This boy had blackish-blue hair. His eyes were a dark green. He was tall, built, maybe in his twenties. He was looking towards me as well. There was a frown on his face as he glared. Who were these people? They looked at me as if they knew my secret. Could they? Could they somehow guess that I was a demon? How?

  Turning from the two boys my eyes shifted to the woman they were with. She seemed old enough to be both of their mothers. As pretty as she was she paled next to the pure boy. She was talking to the bouncer. Maybe trying to get the under-aged kid inside of the club.

  Why were they here? What were people like them doing here? Maybe they were Demon Hunters too. I could see the sword on the black-haired boy’s hip. If you’re going to wear a sword, you better know how to use it.

  There was power inside of the woman as well. Element powers like Aya. I could smell the blue magic inside of her. Water base magic always smelled like the ocean. That was the scent that came from her.

  “What’s up?” Shu asked and I shook my head turning away from the group. I didn’t know what to make of them. The best thing to do was to ignore them for now. If they didn’t get in our way, then it didn’t matter. Maybe if they were Demon Hunters having them in the club with us would improve our chances making it out alive.

  “It’s nothing,” I told him. I could feel a nervous energy around Shu. This was his big moment. This was the closest that we’ve ever gotten to Kenji. “Don’t forget your earplugs.” I didn’t want Shu to fall under any spell Maya was going to cast over the people inside.

  “Don’t forget yours either.” I didn’t need them. I outclassed Maya. I would still make a show of putting my earplugs in so Aya and Dante couldn’t question it. I watched as Shu's eyes shifted around the crowd falling on the strange trio. I noticed a lot of people were looking at them. They had this pull about them. I was surprised that alone didn’t win them a ticket inside of the club.

  “Are you ready for this?” Shu asked me and I shook my head.

  “We’re about to take on three demons. Two of which are S class. Sure, what’s not to be ready for.” Could he hear the sarcasm in my voice?

  “I wish we knew what they were planning.” That would have been a lot of help. If we knew what they were planning then, we could come up with a plan as well.

  “To do evil things,” I offered. Shu gave me a look that said I was stupid. Of course, they were going to do evil things. They were demons after all. “No matter what they are planning we have to be smart about this, Shu. We can’t let our emotions blind us.” He couldn’t see Kenji and attack without thought.

  “I know,” Shu said as the last set that was in front of us past into the club. Our turn was next. My eyes shifted to the odd group again. The woman was still talking to the bouncer. The two boys were looking at the crowd of people waiting in line. Once again, my eyes locked with blue ones.

  “Zero, come on,” Aya called me as she walked into the club after flashing a fake ID for the two of us. She grabbed my hand pulling me behind her as I kept looking at the pure boy. Who was he? What was he to be so . . . perfect?

  SIX

  Like a beacon in my moments of clarity, I returned to the city I was born in, the city I died in. It had been twenty years since my brother shunned me and ran away. Twenty years since the night, I lost my family, since I lost myself. This was the first time the hunger didn’t nag at me. It was the first time the fog that normally kept me in a drunken haze cleared away.

  Twenty years and the humans finally accepted that they were no longer alone in this world. That demons walked among them. They chased them around; they made them their meals. For the first time in who knows how long humans weren’t at the top of the food chain.

  I didn’t need to think to know where my feet was taking me. It was the only place in this city worth going. The home that I was raised in. The house that I died in. Now my brother lived here. His wife and two daughters lived here.

  Standing outside of their window I could see them holding hands as they bowed their heads over their dinner. Lots of peop
le turned to God when they learned demons walked the Earth. The end of days were here they said. I can’t remember ever praying before a meal with my family. My brother had faith now. Seeing the dead rise can do that to a man.

  “How sad, I missed one.” A voice that was burned into my mind spoke. It was a voice that I haven’t heard in twenty years. Whipping around the breath left my lungs as I came face to face with a demon. He was still as beautiful as the memories lead me to believe. He stood there with a smile on his lips.

  My feelings were all jumbled inside of me. The two sides of myself wared over the appearance of this man. On the one hand, I wanted him to take me like he had the day I died. I wanted to feel the same pleasure that only he seemed to bring me. On the other hand, I wanted to rip his throat out and get the revenge my family deserved.

  “Ban,” That was his name. I could feel the rage inside of me bubble and boil. I could feel the new found powers being a demon brought me awaken inside of my veins. I wouldn’t just lay down and take his beating this time. I was no longer a weak human. I had the power I needed to fight back.

  His fingers combed through my hair. The touch made me close my eyes as shivers trickled down my spine. He gripped my hair roughly and I could feel my fangs pressing down from my gums. I was ready for a fight if that was what he wanted.

  Ban’s mouth smashed against mine. His tongue encouraged me to part my lips and let him inside. I could feel his controlling kiss and I pressed into his body. Lost in the lust that his kiss brought I could remember the way he touched me. I wanted him to touch me again.

  He pushed me back against the side of the house. I sucked in a sharp breath when his fingers pushed into the front of my pants. Turning my head to the side I closed my eyes as his fingers wrapped around me. I could feel the pressure he implied as he stroke me.